Chicago Bears suspend, fine tight end Martellus Bennett

BOURBONNAIS, Ill. – Tight end Martellus Bennett was suspended indefinitely by the Chicago Bears on Tuesday after an altercation during practice the day before.

General manager Phil Emery said the team “made a decision to fine and suspend Martellus Bennett for an undetermined length of time,” though he wouldn’t specify the amount of the fine.

Bennett was taken to the ground Monday with a grab to the shoulder by rookie cornerback Kyle Fuller, a first-round draft choice from Virginia Tech. The play occurred during a full-pads scrimmage when players are not supposed to be taken to the ground.

Bennett, 27, responded by getting up, grabbing Fuller and slamming him to the field.

Martellus Bennett has been involved in several practice scrapes this training camp, and a few last year.

“I play hard, go hard every single day,” he said Monday after practice. “I’m probably one of the most violent people on the field. That’s just my style of play. That’s how I play. I’m going to continue to play the way I play. That’s what I’m here for.”

Bennett will not be with the Bears at camp until the suspension is lifted.

“I’ll be talking with him,” Chicago coach Marc Trestman said. “We’ve got a plan and a process in place. We want to go through this process and when the time is right, he’ll be back.”

Fuller was not punished for the incident.

Raiders’ Ausberry to have surgery

NAPA, Calif. – David Ausberry, who is projected to start at tight end for the Oakland Raiders, is scheduled to have knee surgery and will miss Friday’s exhibition-season opener against Minnesota.

Ausberry, 26, has not practiced this week. Coach Dennis Allen didn’t disclose the exact nature of the injury or which knee Ausberry hurt.

“It looks like we’re probably going to have to do a procedure on that knee, so he may be out for a little while,” Allen said.

Notes

• Green Bay tackle Don Barclay, viewed by Packers coach Mike McCarthy as the team’s top reserve offensive lineman, was carted from the practice field with what appeared to be a significant right-knee injury.

Barclay’s right knee buckled beneath him while he was blocking rookie outside linebacker Adrian Hubbard during an 11-on-11 drill and the play ended with Barclay clutching his right knee in pain.

• St. Louis quarterback Sam Bradford, who had surgery on his left knee in November, is unlikely to play in Friday’s exhibition opener against New Orleans, Rams coach Jeff Fisher said.

Fisher said offensive tackle Jake Long, also coming off knee surgery, would be held out Friday.

• Charges have been filed against a Cleveland Browns fan who is accused of urinating on the grave of former Baltimore Ravens owner Art Modell and posting a video of it on YouTube.

Modell died in 2012 at age 87 and is buried at a Pikesville, Md., cemetery. He spent 43 years as an NFL owner, overseeing the Browns from 1961 until he moved the team to Baltimore in 1996 to become the Ravens. The move left many Cleveland fans bitter.

Baltimore County Police said Paul S. Serbu, 61, of Franklin, Ohio, has been charged with disorderly conduct in a cemetery, a misdemeanor.

• Ed Sprinkle, a 200-pound defensive end for the Chicago Bears in the 1940s and ’50s, died July 28 in Palos Heights, Ill. He was 90.

Sprinkle was labeled the “meanest man” in football in a Collier’s magazine article in 1950. He was nicknamed “The Claw” for using his forearm to deliver blows to opponents.